A portable cooler and support for a pressurized keg

ABSTRACT

A portable cooler of lightweight material having an opening in one end through which a beer container, such as a pressurized keg complete with its own tapping system may extend. The opening is sloped such that the keg when introduced into the opening forms a watertight fitting. The cooler unit may be made of a minimum of three molded pieces.

United States Patent Eugene B. Addison [72] inventors Lake Side Drive, Box 38, Hope Valley, RJ.

02832; Earl R. Pitcher, Moonstone Beach, R.F.D. l, Wakefield, 11.1. 02879 [21] Appl. No. 863,934

[22] Filed Oct. 6, 1969 [45] Patented Dec. 14, 1971 [54] PORTABLE COOLER AND SUPPORT FOR A PRESSURIZED KEG 2 Claims, 3 Drawing Figs.

[52] U.S.C1 312/351, 312/236, 312/290,222/183, 222/146, 62/398 [51] Int. Cl A47b 81/00 [50] Field of Search 222/180,

181,183, 399, 146 C,563, 130; 312/236, 290, 351; 206/57; 220/17, 29, 9 F, 8; 217/73, 7 1'1, 5 H; 62/389, 331, 371, 457, 396, 398, 400; 221/150 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,922,995 8/1933 Wallach 222/146 X Primary Examiner- Robert B. Reeves Assistant Examiner-Norman L. Stack, Jr. Attorney-Barlow and Barlow ABSTRACT: A portable cooler of lightweight material having an opening in one end through which a beer container, such as a pressurized keg complete with its own tapping system may extend. The opening is sloped such that the keg when introduced into the opening forms a watertight fitting. The cooler unit may be made of a minimum of three molded pieces.

PORTABLE COOLER AND SUPPORT FOR A PRESSURIZED KEG BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to portable coolers for outdoor picnics, family gatherings, social gatherings, etc. and more particularly to coolers for keeping beer cool.

Recent years have witnessed a tremendous growth in outdoor recreation. An integral part in this outdoor activity is the provision of cold refreshments to satisfy enveryones thirst. Also growing more popular each year has been the consumption of beer and with this new and improved methods of packaging and cooling the beer have been developed.

One of the original ways used to keep the beer cold was to ice down several cans or bottles in some sort of tub or container. If the group was a thirsty one or a large one the number of beer cans or bottles to be iced down would be considerable and required several large containers to hold them all. When the amount of beer required became substantial an alternative was to get a quarter keg or larger keg but this required that cumbersome tapping equipment be hauled to the recreation area. The beer industry seeing a need for containers of an intermediate size came out with gallon cans and new coolers were developed to allow the beer to be dispensed from the cans while they remained housed in the cooler. Some of these operated by gravity feed while others required an auxiliary pressurizing system. A further development has been a pressurized beer container complete with its own tapping system such as the one called the TAPPER keg. It is in regard to this beer container that a novel cooler has been developed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the invention is to provide a portable cooler which can be economically produced by molding a minimum of three pieces. The fewer the number of pieces to be made, the more competitive a product can be on the market.

Also an object of the invention is to provide a lightweight cooler which when loaded for its intended purpose is easily carried.

Another object is to provide a cooler having no metal parts to rust, bend, to assemble or require replacement.

Another object of the invention is to provide a simplified beer keg cooler which doesn't require any complicated tapping equipment.

A further object of the invention is to provide a dual purpose cooler which can be used as an insulated housing for a pressurized keg complete with its own tapping system or as a conventional picnic cooler to carry food and drinks.

A further object of the invention is to provide a storage area for the removable plug when a pressurized keg is in the cooler.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. I is a perspective view of the cooler with the top and plug shown in detached view;

FIG. 2 is a vertical sectional view taken along the longitudinal axis of the cooler; and

FIG. 3 is a detail view of the transverse support member.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now to FIG. 1, the cooler is generally designated by the reference numeral 10. The bottom section of the cooler consists of bottom 20, sidewalls 12 and 14, rear wall 18, and front wall 16. Centrally located in the front wall is an aperture 30 defined by edge 32 facing outwardly and edge 34 facing inwardly with the surface therebetween curved or sloping following the contour of a pressurized keg having its own tapping system such as that shown in FIG. 2 by the dotted line and described as element 70. A watertight seal is formed when the keg is placed in position in the aperture. It is also possible to place an O-ring 56 in the aperture to additionally insure a waterti t fitting. A transverse support member 40 adds streng to the bottom section and perfonns the dual function of supporting the keg when placed into operational position and also guiding the keg into aperture 30. The latter mentioned guiding function is produced by the arcuate cutout section defined by edges 42 and 44 with its curved or sloping surface between the edges 42 and 44 conforming to the contour of the keg. The fact that edge 44 is higher than edge 42 causes the keg to settle down into the aperture opening and provides a constant force to keep the keg wedged into a watertight position. The area shown in FIG. 2 between the front wall and the transverse support provides a storage area 48 for the aperture plug 50 when a TAPPER keg is in position. The rest of space in the cooler is filled with ice to keep the beer cool.

The aperture plug 50 conforms to the shape of the aperture 30 and has a lip 52 along the back at the top and a lip 54 along the back at the bottom. When the plug is placed in the aperture, a watertight seal is fonned and the cooler of the invention becomes a conventional picnic cooler.

The top 60 of the cooler has a lip 62 which extends entirely around the periphery of the top. When the top is placed upon the bottom section, the outside edges of the lip 62 are contiguous with the outside perimeter of the vertical walls and there is a snug fit to provide an insulated compartment therein.

The walls of the cooler 10 are formed of a lightweight heatinsulating material, preferably one of the foamed plastics such as polystyrene or urethane.

It is to be realized that while the invention has been described in regard to holding a beer container, that other beverages such as soft drinks, ice tea, etc., can also be dispensed from a similar container.

We claim:

I. A portable cooler adapted to house a pressurized keg complete with its own tapping system in dispensing position comprising a rectangular container having a bottom, two sidewalls, a front wall and a rear wall, intermediate said front and rear wall a thin transverse support member extends up from said bottom and has its opposite ends attached to said sidewalls thereby forming a compartment along the bottom of the cooler between the front wall and the transverse support member, an arcuate cutout section fonned along the top surface of said transverse support member for supporting a keg, the front wall having an aperture therein which represents a substantial portion of said front wall through which the entire front dispensing end of a keg can extend when placed in the cooler in dispensing position, said aperture having an inwardly sloping wall which conforms to the contour of a keg, an aperture plug whose shape substantially conforms to the shape of said aperture removably inserted in said aperture, the bottom of the cutout section of said transverse support member and the bottom of said aperture being at least a height above the bottom of said cooler equal to the depth of said plug whereby said plug may be stored in said compartment along the bottom of the cooler when a keg is inserted in said aperture, a removable top for the cooler having a lip extending around its periphery to form a tight fit when placed into engagement with the bottom section, said plug, top and bottom section of said cooler being made of a lightweight plastic material having heat insulating properties.

2. A portable cooler as recited in claim 1 further comprising handles formed adjacent the top of said front and rear walls for can'ying said cooler.

i i l i i 

1. A portable cooler adapted to house a pressurized keg complete with its own tapping system in dispensing position comprising a rectangular container having a bottom, two sidewalls, a front wall and a rear wall, intermediate said front and rear wall a thin transverse support member extends up from said bottom and has its opposite ends attached to said sidewalls thereby forming a compartment along the bottom of the cooler between the front wall and the transverse support member, an arcuate cutout section formed along the top surface of said transverse support member for supporting a keg, the front wall having an aperture therein which represents a substantial portion of said front wall through which the entire front dispensing end of a keg can extend when placed in the cooler in dispensing position, said aperture having an inwardly sloping wall which conforms to the contour of a keg, an aperture plug whose shape substantially conforms to the shape of said aperture removably inserted in said aperture, the bottom of the cutout section of said transverse support member and the bottom of said aperture being at least a height above the bottom of said cooler equal to the depth of said plug whereby said pluG may be stored in said compartment along the bottom of the cooler when a keg is inserted in said aperture, a removable top for the cooler having a lip extending around its periphery to form a tight fit when placed into engagement with the bottom section, said plug, top and bottom section of said cooler being made of a lightweight plastic material having heat insulating properties.
 2. A portable cooler as recited in claim 1 further comprising handles formed adjacent the top of said front and rear walls for carrying said cooler. 